Really Surprised!

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

There is definitely an excellent idea hidden in the background of the film. Unfortunately, it's difficult to find it.

A nerd gains the friendship of two of his frat brothers when his dad offers them his condo for the week in Palm Springs. He also offers the fraternity a hot tub and jacuzzi if they can help his son find a girl. They meet two guys from a rival fraternity, and make a bet on who can nail the Designated Babe first....So it's the middle of the eighties, and Hollywood thought it would be a great idea to bring out another cheeky comedy about Frat boys on spring break just trying to lose it, with hilarious consequences....When you watch films like this, you know what to expect. From the title, right up to the narrative. It's by the numbers stuff, and if you're sniffy about this stuff, your best to stay away from them, because you will get exactly what you expect to get.There's plenty of nudge nudge, wink wink scenes, lots of embarrassing moments for the main leads, and of course, a special guest star as the captain of police.Geoffrey's is brilliant as the geek without a clue, and you know from the instant someone bumps into him in the swimming pool, what the outcome will be of the whole film.The rest of the films is all filler, with generic high school caricatures being slung at you from all angles.Its nothing original, but its bright, and short, and never gets boring.Well worth a peek if you like these cheeky comedies...

I love the films opening sequence. The music really lightens the mood. The opening scene is shot in black and white which makes the film really pop the moment it splashes color in Palm Springs.I liken this to "The Last American Virgin". "Fraternity Vacation" tells us all we thought we needed to know from the cover, but then something rather strange happens.The film takes-on some 'rather serious' themes. All the gratuitous nudity(as well as most of the partying theme) takes a back seat for the last half of the film. That's the one characteristic that makes this stand out in this genre.Of course there's some issues with the acting. Stephen Geoffreys(Wendell) is good, Cameron Dye(Joe) is passable, and Tim Robbins as "Mother Tucker" does an alright job. Sheree Wilson is o.k., but Amanda Bearse's performance is a bit rigid.Bearse is the annoying rich-daddy's girl, but she is a bit too over-the-top with it. Easily the worst performance in the film. Wilson is the mature 'mark', but her character could have used some more dialog.Kathleen Kinmont and Barbara Crampton are perfectly cast in smaller roles, but are unfortunately left out of much of the last half of the film.The film wraps up in the same manner as most of these films - with the leads being put in jail, and some mad father figure on the loose.The sights and sounds of the films first hour make it worthwhile, and it's themes are surprisingly serious, but this is still an 80's boob comedy that is a dish best served with a cold beer and a grain of salt.I do consider this to be quite a bit better than most of the films in this genre, which isn't saying much, but if you're going to re-live one of these, this is a decent option.You might Like this if you liked: Spring Break(not as good as this), Private Resort(about even), or Hardbodies(not as good).59/100

One of my favorite pastimes is scanning old pawn shops and video stores for movies that are long out of print and fit firmly in cheezy genres like campy horror or teen sex romps. Thankfully, cheap DVD pressings of these movies are starting to surface more and more often. I picked up this title at Walmart for $2.88 Canadian. It's neat to see Tim Robbins in one of his earlier roles. The movie itself is quite watchable, but far from a masterpiece of comedy. The acting is not as bad as some I have seen and there are a few laughs. Pick this one up if you get the chance. It's got a pretty good soundtrack (if you like 80's cheese)and a no brainer plot whose twists you can spot from 20 miles away. The DVD is a really clean print and is not filled with digital artifacts like so many of these cheaper releases. The audio (music and dialogue) is crisp and well mastered. COnsidering this film is nearly 20 years old, I was surprised that I hadn't heard of it sooner. It dosen't quite have the potential for a cult classic, being inferior to Animal House and Ski School, but it would be fun at a party. Tim Robbins is really great and gets quite a bit of screen time. The women are quite attractive and there is some gratuitous nudity (classic 80's formula).

Trivial, surprisingly tame and unsurprisingly moronic sex comedy, a typical product of the 80's. One of those insignificant little pictures that are not worth seeking out to see, but are good-natured enough to be pretty painless experiences if you actually find yourself watching them. Not exactly the kind of movie you expect to see Tim Robbins starring in, but I guess he really needed the work. (*1/2)